European Games | 28 Jun 2023

Romania and Sweden wins opening matches in Krakow

The Table Tennis tournament at the 2023 European Games in Krakow has reached the second phase. On the sixth day of play, the Round of 16 took place. In this round, not all teams were involved, as the top four seeds will enter the game from the quarterfinals tomorrow.

Romania (12) – Great Britain (7) 3-1

Darius MOVILEANU, Eduard IONESCU – Tom JARVIS, Paul DRINKHALL 3-1 (11-3, 12-10, 5-11, 11-8)

Ovidiu IONESCU – Liam PITCHFORD 0-3 (7-11, 2-11, 6-11)

Eduard IONESCU – Paul DRINKHALL 3-0 (11-7, 11-3, 11-4)

Ovidiu IONESCU – Tom JARVIS 3-0 (11-8, 11-5, 11-6)

In the opening round of the Team's Event, Romania's rejuvenated team, led by the experienced Ovidiu IONESCU, defeated Great Britain. Darius MOVILEANU made his debut at the 2023 European Games, teaming up with Eduard IONESCU, who had already created fantastic upsets in the Singles Event. Romania's pairings set a winning pace, and singles quarterfinalist Eduard IONESCU also emerged victorious against Paul DRINKHALL in the individual match.

Liam PITCHFORD was the only player to score for Team GB in the match against Ovidiu IONESCU. However, on his 34th birthday, IONESCU sealed the match in the duel against Tom JARVIS. "I felt the pain already in the mixed doubles in the individual part of the tournament, and today it was actually getting worse against PITCHFORD. But he played fantastic anyway, so huge congrats to him," said IONESCU.

In his second exit at the table, IONESCU put the pain aside. "When I saw Edouard win 3-0 in the way he did against DRINKHALL, it gave me energy. The pain was less important in my head, and I gave everything for my match. I wanted to avoid putting a young player against PITCHFORD at 2-2. I just gave my best to reach the quarterfinals with this young team. It's a great future ahead of us, for sure," IONESCU expressed.

In the next round, Romania will play against Portugal. "They also have one very tired guy, Marcos FREITAS," added IONESCU, referring to the Portuguese player who won silver in singles last night.

Slovakia (6) – Sweden (11) 2-3

Ema LOBOSOVA, Barbora BALAZOVA - Filippa BERGAND, Christina KALLBERG 3-1 (11-4, 4-11, 11-8, 12-10)

Tatiana KUKULKOVA -Linda BERGSTROM 1-3 (4-11, 6-11, 11-5, 11-13)

Barbora BALAZOVA - Christina KALLBERG 3-2 (9-11, 11-9, 5-11, 11-7, 11-8)

Tatiana KUKULKOVA -Filippa BERGAND 2-3 (4-11, 11-7, 6-11, 11-7, 6-11)

Ema LOBOSOVA - Linda BERGSTROM 0-3 (7-11, 6-11, -11)

Sweden stages remarkable comeback to secure quarterfinal spot after trailing 1-2. Slovakia takes early lead, with Barbora BALAZOVA's important win against Christina KALLBERG. Filippa BERGAND's victory turns the tide in Sweden's favor, setting the stage for Linda BERGSTROM's dominant performance.

"It was a tremendous team effort with three strong wins on our side. We always believed and fought, even when we were trailing. I think that's what led us to victory today," said Linda BERGSTROM.

Filippa BERGAND added, "I focused on taking it point by point and not getting overwhelmed by the outcome. Despite being behind, I believed I had what it takes to win. Playing freely and relaxed was crucial for me today. I am thrilled to contribute to this important victory."

In the quarterfinal, Sweden will face Germany.

"We will prepare diligently and give our all. They may be the favorites, but we thrive as underdogs!"

The coach Tobias BERGMAN remarked, "We consistently fought back despite being down. I was a bit surprised by their team lineup. The doubles and the third match were crucial, and although we lost both, BERGRAND did an excellent job against KUKULKOVA."

Luxemborg (8) – Ukraine (12) 2-3

Tessy GONDERINGER, Sarah DE NUTTE – Hanna GAPONOVA, Solomiya BRATEYKO 0-3 (10-12, 4-11, 8-11)

NI Xia Lian – Margaryta PESOTSKA 3-1 (13-11, 11-6, 5-11, 11-8)

Sarah DE NUTTE - Solomiya BRATEYKO 1-3 (14-12, 9-11, 10-12, 10-12)

NI Xia Lian – Hanna GAPONOVA 3-0 (11-8, 11-4, 11-5)

Tessy GONDERINGER - Margaryta PESOTSKA 1-3 (4-11, 11-8, 5-11, 8-11)

Ukraine advanced to the quarterfinals after their clash against Luxembourg. NI Xia Lian emerged victorious in both of her encounters against Margaryta PESOTSKA and Hanna GAPONOVA. However, despite her impressive performance, it was not enough to propel Luxembourg to the next round.

In the quarterfinal Ukraine will meet Portugal.

Denmark (10)– Croatia (6) 3-1

Tobias RASMUSSEN, Anders LIND – Filip ZELJKO, Frane KOJIC 3-2 (9-11, 11-5, 11-6, 12-14, 11-9)

Jonathan GROTH – Tomislav PUCAR 1-3 (10-12, 11-5, 8-11, 11-13)

Anders LIND – Frane KOJIC 3-1 (11-8, 4-11, 11-9, 11-7)

Jonathan GROTH – Filip ZELJKO 3-2 (9-11, 11-4, 11-7, 5-11, 11-4)

Denmark moved to quarters after victory over croatia. It was only Tomislav PUCAR who won the point in the match against Jonathan GROTH. However, despite being under pressure Jonathan managed to prevailed against Filip ZELJKO.

In the upcoming Round of 8, Denmark will face off against France.

Slovakia (11) – Slovenia (5) 3-0

Jakub ZELINKA, Lubomir PISTEJ – Peter HRIBAR, Deni KOZUL 3-2 (8-11, 8-11, 11-7, 11-9, 11-9)

WANG Yang – Darko JORGIC 3-0 (11-9, 11-8, 12-10)

Lubomir PISTEJ – Deni KOZUL 3-0 (11-2, 11-1, 11-6)

Slovakia put a halt to Slovenia's progress in a straight matches clash. The doubles match proved to be of utmost importance.

"The doubles match was extremely important. We were down 2-0 and 7-5, then 2-1 and 8-4. We were playing really poorly, probably the worst match of our careers, but somehow we managed to make a comeback as they started making mistakes, and we seized our chance," explained Lubomir PISTEJ.

After the dramatic doubles match, the duel between WANG Yang and Darko JORGIC concluded in straight games, leaving Slovenia with no way back.

"WANG was ready for JORGIC. I prepared him during the warm-up, and he started the match very well," joked PISTEJ after the duel. "I knew that if he defeated Darko, it would almost be over because we had the lead and it would be difficult for them to come back. I am very happy with my performance in the last match."

Austria (7) – Poland (9) 1-3

Anastasia STERNER, LIU Jia - Anna WEGRZYN, KatarzynaWEGRZYN 1-3 (11-8, 7-11, 10-12, 7-11)

Sofia POLCANOVA – Natalia BAJOR 0-3 (4-11, 6-11, 6-11)

LIU Jia – Katarzyna WEGRZYN 3-1 (11-4, 10-12, 11-9, 11-5)

Sofia POLCANOVA – Anna WEGRZYN 0-3. POLCANOVA witrhdrew due the hip injury.

Unfortunately, the exciting duel between Austria and Poland came to an early end as POLCANOVA withdrew from the match due to a hip injury. Tomorrow, Austria will be facing France in their upcoming match.

"Tomorrow, we will be facing France in the quarterfinals . I managed to defeat YUAN Jia Nan in the singles tournament, but tomorrow is a new day. Both she and I will be prepared for the match," stated BAJOR.

Belgium (8) – Poland (9) 3-1

Martin ALLEGRO, Adrien RASSENFOSSE – Samuel KULCZYCKI, Maciej KUBIK 0-3 (14-16, 8-11, 3-11)

Cedric NUYTINCK – Jakub DYJAS 3-2 (8-11, 11-3, 2-11, 11-7, 11-6)

Adrien RASSENFOSSE – Maciej KUBIK 3-1 (11-9, 11-6, 7-11, 12-10)

Cedric NUYTINCK - Samuel KULCZYCKI 3-2 (11-9, 9-11, 8-11, 11-8, 11-9)

After close duel at the edge of the knife Belgium beat Poland. They move forward to play against top seeded team of Germany.

Hungary (5) – Czechia (10) 1-3

Bernadett BALINT, Mercedes NAGYVARADI – Katerina TOMANOVSKA, Zdena BLASKOVA 0-3 (9-11, 5-11, 8-11)

Dora MADARASZ- - Hana MATELOVA 3-1 (4-11, 11-4, 11-5, 11-9)

Mercedes NAGYVARADI – Zdena BLASKOVA 3-0 (11-5, 11-7, 12-10)

Dora MADARASZ - Katerina TOMANOVSKA 3-0 (11-3, 11-9, 11-9)

Hungary booked their quarterfinal place after victory over Czechia. In next round they will meet Romania. The only point for Czechia team came in doubles.

"It was truly a great match. Although we didn't start well in the doubles, I am extremely happy with my victory against MATELOVA. We haven't played against each other in a long time, so it was quite a pleasant surprise for me. MERCEDES' dominant win in her match also came as a surprise, but a positive one that significantly influenced my mindset going into my final match," stated MADARASZ.

Coach Zoltan BATORFI shared his thoughts, saying, "After the doubles and the first match against MATELOVA, we didn't drop a single game. I initially anticipated a 50-50 match, but MADARASZ and MERCEDESZ were in excellent form and proved that today. The convincing score is a bit surprising to me. The upcoming match against Romania will also be a close one, but we will give our all and bring our best performance to the table."